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19.12.16

#Review: (DON'T YOU) FORGET ABOUT ME by Kate Karyus Quinn

(DON'T YOU) FORGET ABOUT ME

Author: Kate Karyus QuinnSource: Purchased from BookOutletPublisher: HarperTeenPublicationDate: June 10, 2014Rating: 2/5 starsSummary:Welcome to Gardnerville.A place where no one gets sick. And no one ever dies.Except...There’s a price to pay for paradise. Every fourth year, the strange power that fuels the town exacts its payment by infecting teens with deadly urges. In a normal year in Gardnerville, teens might stop talking to their best friends. In a fourth year, they’d kill them.Four years ago, Skylar’s sister, Piper, was locked away after leading sixteen of her classmates to a watery grave. Since then, Skylar has lived in a numb haze, struggling to forget her past and dull the pain of losing her sister. But the secrets and memories Piper left behind keep taunting Skylar—whispering that the only way to get her sister back is to stop Gardnerville’s murderous cycle once and for all.

My status updates for this one are literally all positive. Because until like ~85% of the book, I LOVED this. Like the mystery, the intrigue, the weird supernatural aspect to it: it had me roped in. BUT THEN THE ENDING RUINED IT. Like this book went from 5 stars to zero stars real quick imo. The ending was SO STUPID. I don't understand how people can like it at all. But let me tell you the good things first.The supernatural element to this one was super interesting. Teens raging with hormones would murder people every four years which was like so cool and interesting. We learned a lot about past "explosions" of this and even the little things that happened in years in between. It was so cool and interesting and I was waiting to see what would happen. I even really liked that there wasn't really an explanation for it (AT FIRST) because the town seemed to be following "an eye for an eye": You get to live forever BUT some teens may murder other teens every four years. It's like the supernatural Olympics. I also really liked our main character Skylar. I liked that she was super unreliable because she was missing memories and taking pills to forget (although I thought the way this was handled was MEH at best tbh. She was an addict but like it was portrayed as being a good thing (in town) because it kept her "under control" and I was not okay with it?? Why aren't more people upset by this??). This made her easy to connect to but also not want to trust her whatsoever. She also was doing the best she could under the circumstances: she felt the fourth year pull but really wanted to help people too. It was a tough line to walk for a main character and I think she was written REALLY well.I also liked the secondary characters who were introduced. It as interesting to see their roles in their own lives and how this intersected with Skylar and the town's mysteries. I had guesses about everyone and their involvement and I was right on the money (there were lots of hints -- almost too many -- which made me think maybe I wasn't right, but I was). I did really like everyone though. I liked that they did what they thought they needed to in order to protect the town, their livelihood, and the people they cared about. BUT I DID NOT LIKE THE END. And I don't mean how the "final battle" played out, that was really predictable. I mean WHY there are supernatural powers in town. BECAUSE IT WAS SO STUPID. SO STUPID. SO STUPID!!! Like I was so angry at what was revealed that I almost DNF-ed the book at 90%. IT WAS LITERALLY THE STUPIDEST THING EVER. It was as though someone thought, "oh man I need to make someone control the supernatural powers. what can I see around me???" and then BAM, inspiration. AND SO STUPID. I can't handle it. I am so mad. SO MAD.The ending completely ruined the book for me. I almost want to pull a Piper and Skylar and rip out the pages and make my own ending. Is that the point?? Did I figure it out?? Anyway, if you're super curious but DON'T want to read it, message me and I'll tell you the ending. If you're super curious and read it and get angry, message me so we can rant. If you're super curious and read it and like it, message me to explain why because it does not compute. But like I said the first 85% was SO GOOD. Like I loved it tbh. And then .... not so much.

Jamie is a Canadian book blogger who owns more books than she can fit in her room. She mostly reads YA but has a soft spot for all types Science Fiction and Fantasy, so she carries those around with her as well. Jamie typically reads while drinking tea, curled up in a little ball for maximum warmth.

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